By Kyle Roberts
RUSTON, La. — United States Speaker of the House and Representative Mike Johnson (R) came through North Louisiana Saturday, stopping at the Historic Fire Station to meet with dozens of Lincoln Parish citizens and talk about the upcoming election on Tuesday.
Ruston Mayor Ronny Walker gave opening remarks before Johnson took the lectern, where his 45-minute speech covered a variety of talking points– from his roots in Louisiana to the border and immigration to his working relationship with former President Donald J. Trump.
“To my knowledge, this is the first time in the history of the city that the Speaker of the House has come to Ruston,” Walker said. “He is a great friend of mine and a great friend of Ruston and Lincoln Parish. I couldn’t have been happier (with how the town hall went) — there was standing room only, and I think it speaks volumes of our city’s support of him, also.”
Johnson took a few questions from the audience and the media following his speech and expressed his pleasure in having the opportunity to represent Ruston and Lincoln Parish.
“We’re so excited,” Johnson said. “It makes sense, I think, to have (District 4) represent the I-20 corridor, and we’re delighted by the new map. We got a few new parishes, and we’re excited.”
Johnson also talked about how important North Louisiana is to him, despite his role as the 56th Speaker of the House.
“The thing about North Louisiana — everybody’s the same kind of people, you know? And that’s my people,” Johnson said. “It’s where I grew up. We had a great event here today– most of the people in the room I’ve known for a long time. Louisiana is blessed with great congressional representation. Julia Letlow used to have this district, and she’s like my sister. We work very closely together. I think it’s going to be a good thing for the state.”
Asked about both representing District 4 and his Speaker duties, Johnson credited his staff and team along with his family for being able to properly handle all needed duties.
“It’s a lot to manage,” Johnson said. “I have a great team, and they help with all of that. We’ve got about 100 people working for our office now, because the Speaker has a big set of responsibilities with the whole map and legislative agenda. But the most important thing is to take care of folks at home. So we try to balance that.
“My wife (Kelly) is very understanding and our kids are very understanding. They’ve been a big part of it, and we’ve been able to manage it. We’re looking forward to the days ahead.”
The most recently approved district map in Louisiana switched Lincoln Parish from District 5, which was represented by Letlow, to District 4, where voters are projected to vote Johnson in officially on Tuesday.
Johnson is currently running against another Republican, Joshua Morrott, for the U.S. Representative 4th Congressional District, which now includes Lincoln Parish.
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